The Portrait
by Hatake Megumi
Summary: Long ago, an artist kidnapped a girl and painted her portrait. They say her soul is trapped inside and can only be freed by one with a pure heart. One day, a young man sees it and is enchanted. With a heart less pure than pure, can he save her? Naruhina
1. First Sight

The Portrait

Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto – I'd rather own Kakashi but he doesn't belong to me either.

AN: Sorry if some of the characters are a bit OOC.

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_She cried. Her tears fell on her porcelain cheeks as he painted her portrait in the moonlight. _

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"And this is a supposed van Gogh oil painting, although very beautiful, there is much controversy as to whether or not this painting is a fake," said the guide as she led the class towards a painting. Unfortunately for the students, their field trip to the art gallery had an assignment attached to it. Some of the class were taking notes on the notepads they were all required to bring. There were others on the other hand, who were about to fall asleep.

"Naruto, come on, we're moving onto the next painting," whispered an annoyed Sakura.

"I don't understand why a dobe like you took art if you're not even interested in it," said Sasuke.

"It's not my fault I needed an arts course to pass high school! I can't sing, dance or play an instrument and politics was at the same time as drama class!" announced the one called Naruto, rather loudly.

"Not so loud moron!" scolded Sakura. She slapped him quite hard on the head to emphasize her point. "Look, you only need to pay attention to what the guide says for one painting so you can write your report on it. Afterwards, do whatever you want but just don't make us look stupid."

"Yes ma'am," replied the blonde with a salute.

"Here with have a painting by the great master Sai," announced the guide.

"Oh, the stalker…" muttered Sasuke.

"The creepy painter?" asked Naruto.

"Yeah, apparently he would stalk people and then paint them," replied Sakura.

Naruto looked up at the huge painting before him. The sight was breathtaking. It was a portrait of a young lady with long indigo hair. She wore a pale cream gown and stood by a window in the moonlight, her back mostly towards the onlookers in the gallery, her head turned over her shoulder. Her eyes, a pale lavender seemed to hold an inexplicable sadness within them.

"He might've been a stalker, but he knew how to paint," muttered Naruto. Both his friends shushed him as the guide started her lecture.

"Although the painter Sai is revered as one of the most skilled artists in history, he was infamous for following his subjects in an almost stalkerish fashion and then painting them. Even so, his notoriety is taken up another notch with the story that follows this painting. Supposedly, the master painter was extremely intrigued by the girl in the painting; so much that he decided to kidnap her. According to the tale, the painter was so intent on painting her portrait that he did nothing else for many days. When he finally finished the portrait in seven days, he looked at his prisoner and realized that she was dead. It is said that the painter died a few months later from grief even though the date of Sai's death as well as the date of when this painting was created is unknown."

"What an asshole," declared Naruto. The class laughed at his comment while his teacher, Kurenai sensei gave him a menacing look.

"Well, Sai really wasn't an admirable character," said the guide. "But he knew how to paint. There's another part of this story too."

The whole class fell silent.

"It is said that the girl didn't really die. Instead, she was lifeless as Sai took her soul and put it in her portrait. They say that sometimes, this portrait sheds tears because of the girl's soul is sealed inside the portrait."

"HOW DO WE GET IT OUT? WE NEED TO FREE HER NOW!" yelled Naruto. This comment was followed by another round of laughter and another menacing glare from Kurenai sensei.

The guide began again, "Apparently to free her soul, one must have a pure heart strong enough to guide her soul out of the portrait. Other than that, there's nothing more to it."

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"Anywhere else you want to go before we go dobe?" asked Sasuke. The three friends were in the art gallery gathering last bits of information during their free time there.

"Can we see that portrait again?" asked Naruto eagerly.

"Fine," said his friend exasperatedly.

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"She's really pretty isn't she?" asked Sakura.

"I guess," replied Sasuke.

"She's not as pretty as I am, right Sasuke-kun?"

"Hn."

"Come on Sasuke, say it."

"Hn."

While this argument continued, Naruto stared at the portrait.

"_It is said that the girl didn't really die. Instead, she was lifeless as Sai took her soul and put it in her portrait. They say that sometimes, this portrait sheds tears because of the girl's soul is sealed inside the portrait."_

"I wish they would stop calling you 'the girl'. You have a name right?" whispered Naruto.

"Naruto, it's time to go," called Sakura.

"Goodbye," he whispered again to the portrait.

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_The so-called "Master Painter Sai" was a creep who kidnapped a girl and…_

"And what now…" asked an annoyed Naruto. He was trying to write his report for art class. After doing – or his attempts at doing – his chemistry and calculus homework, it had become quite late.

"Whatever, I'll go to bed," the blond declared as his digital clock read 1:09.

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The moon was bright in the sky as Naruto looked up from a dazed state. A foreign window stood where his own should've been. Something warm rested on his head. He looked up. A young lady with indigo hair and a cream gown was sleeping, one hand resting on his hair and his head on her lap. Naruto twitched involuntarily and fell onto the ground with a loud clatter causing the girl to wake.

"I'm sorry, a-are you alright?" she asked gently.

"Heh, no problem. Sasuke says that I have quite a thick skull."

She smiled weakly in reply. An awkward silence ensued.

"Um… you're the girl in the portrait, right?" asked Naruto after a few minutes of silence.

The girl paled slightly and nodded. Another silence came over them.

"Um… eh… why… are you h-here?" she asked shyly.

"I don't know how I got here, I just did! It's really cool though, I really wanted to meet you," Naruto replied with his characteristic grin.

The girl blushed a bright red.

"WAHHHHH!!! You're not dying now are you?" Naruto asked, clearly alarmed. He put his hand on her pale forehead in response.

"N-no... I'm f-fine."

Naruto sat down trying figure out what to say next.

"Um… w-who are you?" the girl asked.

"I'm Naruto and I'll be Konoha's next Hokage so don't forget my name!"

The girl smiled once more. Naruto felt his insides melting in response.

"I'm Hinata. I used to l-live in Konoha a long t-time ago. I guess things never c-change. The leader in our day was called Hokage although many o-other countries started calling their leaders "prime ministers" or "presidents"."

"It's a great place isn't it? Oh and your portrait hangs in the national museum there. It's the most beautiful painting there. Is it true that your soul is trapped there?"

Hinata, whose face had temporarily regained colour suddenly blanched.

"I'm sorry Hinata, I – " he started but he was shushed again. Footsteps were coming towards the room.

"You must leave. He's back," she whispered with fear and desperation in her voice. She pushed him out through the small window before them…

Naruto woke with a start.

"It couldn't have been a dream…" he muttered sleepily. A little tune suddenly caught his attention. His cell phone was ringing.

"NARUTO WHERE THE HELL ARE YOU? YOU HAVE FIVE MINUTES TO GET YOUR ASS HERE 'CAUSE THE CHEMISTRY QUIZ IS ABOUT TO START!!!" came Sakura's voice.

"Dammit!" he yelled. It was 9:05 in the morning. School started five minutes ago. In record time, Naruto got dressed and ran to school.

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"That was brutal…" said Naruto, walking out of chemistry class.

"It's your fault you overslept dobe," said Sasuke in a slightly more lighthearted voice.

"What's the matter with…" began Naruto but Sakura arrived and joined the group of friends.

"Sorry guys, I had to ask Shizune sensei a few questions," she explained. Naruto noticed that her hand suddenly latched onto Sasuke's whose hand willingly enclosed around hers.

"Hey, you guys finally got together," he said sheepishly. He knew that it would happen eventually but Naruto was always slightly afraid at how it would affect their frienship.

"Well… we'll explain at lunch," said Sakura softly, trying to reassure her friend who had a troubled look on his face. "Anyways, we have to English class now and you have History. Don't be late."

They walked off in separate directions. As soon as Naruto got into his class, he got to his desk to prepare for a good nap.

"'Kay, good morning class," began Asuma sensei. "Today we have a new student joining us."

Naruto looked up.

"Please welcome – "

"HINATA!" yelled Naruto. Surprise filled his cerulean eyes and his finger instinctively pointing at the new student.

What's Hinata doing outside of the portrait? How did Sasuke and Sakura get together? Did Naruto pass his chemistry quiz??? Stay tuned to find out!


	2. Emotionless Voice

The Portrait

Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto. huggles Kakashi Damn, I don't own him either. TT

AN: Sorry if the characters are a bit OOC. Also, many thanks for those who have read and reviewed. All of those reviews and favourites made me so happy!

Chapter 2

_"'Kay, good morning class," began Asuma sensei. "Today we have a new student joining us."_

_Naruto looked up._

_"Please welcome – "_

_"HINATA!" yelled Naruto. Surprise filled his cerulean eyes and his finger instinctively pointing at the new student._

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"Do I know you?" she asked. She looked as beautiful as she was last night. Her white sweater accentuated her creamy skin while her light pink skirt, which ended slightly above her knees showed the delicately sculpted legs that were hidden in the gown she wore in his dream. Naruto felt himself almost blush at the sight of her but her voice made him go into shock. The voice from this Hinata was flat and devoid of any emotion; it was so unlike the voice from Hinata in his dream. He looked her in the eyes and saw no emotion reflected inside.

"No… um… you were in my dreams last night," Naruto replied.

"HAHAHAHAHA! Already using pick-up lines Naruto?" howled one of his classmates.

"No, I – " began Naruto but he was cut off.

"Are you stalking me or something?" asked Hinata. Her voice held one emotion: fear. Her lavendar eyes that were blank a minute ago held the same fear that carried into her voice.

"N-No, I swear, I woul – "

"Now, now miss Hyuuga. You just moved here so I'm sure Naruto or anyone else here could have the chance to stalk you. I also don't think that any of the boys here would do such a cowardly thing: I don't teach cowardly students. Besides, you're talking about Naruto here, he doesn't have the brains or the stealth to stalk anyone!" reassured Asuma sensei. The whole class, including Naruto who was indignant at first, joined in. Hinata returned to her neutral state.

"Now that that's settled, I hope you don't mind taking a seat behind Naruto over there and then we can start class."

Naruto took his nap until the bell rang loudly for lunch. Naruto turned around to speak to the girl behind him but she was gone.

"Oh well…" he muttered.

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"I can't wait to see that movie on Saturday," said Sakura to the stoic boy beside her that was her boyfriend.

"It's just a movie…" he replied, his tone of voice was bored but his lips formed a small smirk-like grin.

"It's our first date… and it's Saturday!" squealed Sakura.

"I see…" said a new voice behind them. This made the couple jump slightly.

"Naruto, don't do that again!" scolded Sakura.

"But it was informative!" said Naruto. If it were anyone else, the sentence could've been taken as sarcastic but in Naruto's tone, it sounded almost childish. "Now I know why the two of you won't watch the same movie with me on Friday…" His voice trailed off in a slightly hurt tone.

"Naruto…" Sakura started.

"No, I understand. In fact, I'll give you private time right now!" The speech did not seem angry; instead, Naruto flashed his characteristic grin and set off into the cafeteria.

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"It seemed cool when I said that but now where am I going to sit?" asked Naruto to himself. 'Not to mention that I can't hear the story of how they got together now,' he thought. He scanned the room for an empty table but instead, his eyes fell on a table with a lone Hinata sitting on it.

"Hey," he greeted. "Can I sit here?"

Without looking at him, she nodded in reply.

"I'm Uzumaki Naruto by the way!" He was trying to make some conversation.

"Hinata." Her voice reverted back to the monotone, emotionless state. Her eyes, still lifeless, continued to stare at her school-bought lunch.

"Hey, that looks pretty decent for cafeteria food!" he exclaimed. "But nothing beats ramen!" Naruto took out his cup ramen noodles and a thermos of hot water.

Twenty minutes later, their meals were finished and an awkward silence fell upon the two.

"So… are you getting along ok here?" asked Naruto.

"Yes."

"Um… hey, what classes are you taking? We can compare schedules!"

Hinata handed her printed schedule to Naruto, her eyes still lingered on her tray that had no food left.

"We have art class together today! Too bad you missed the field trip to the art gallery, there was this really gorgeous portrait…"

At the word "portrait", Hinata blanched and quickly snatched her schedule back.

"I'm going now," she said and left.

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Naruto decided it wise to avoid Hinata for the rest of the day. In fact, there seemed to be no point in speaking to her as she was nothing like the Hinata in his dream. As he eagerly lay his head on his pillow at night, he wondered if he would see _that _Hinata again tonight.

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"You're b-back," a melodious voice said merrily. Naruto opened his eyes to see Hinata's head by the foreign window he saw last night. His head was once again on her lap while she looked at him intently, her eyes full of warmth. Naruto smiled, he hadn't been this happy all day.

"Hinata," he whispered.

"Y-yes?" Her voice was not devoid of emotion and seemed to probe into the deepest caves of Naruto's heart and mind, begging him to tell her his worries and fears. If there were any doubt about this, it would promptly be cast away with her asking, "Is there s-something troubling you?"

"Well, there's this – " Naruto was about to talk about the emotionless Hinata in his world but an odd feeling of impropriety settled upon him. He stopped and started again. "Well, you see, my two best friends got together. I know I should be happy for them but…"

"But?" she questioned gently. Her hand shyly began to stroke his blond hair; his head still remained on her lap. Both of them blushed at the contact.

"It might just ruin our friendship. I mean, how am I supposed to know whether or not they want private time? I'm not a psychic or, or…"

"I-If they were truly your friends, they w-wouldn't let anything ruin your friendship. B-besides, they aren't g-going to start going on d-dates in front of you a-all of a s-sudden, r-right?"

"Yeah, I guess…"

"I-is that all t-that's worrying you?"

"Well, you do have this stutter…" he began, causing her face to flame up.

"It's a h-habit! B-But I was asking y-you if anything else about t-this relationship was t-troubling you."

"Well… I had a crush on Sakura a long time ago. But I don't like her anymore! You see, she always liked Sasuke from the beginning but back then Sasuke just ignored her. After awhile, it seemed as if Sasuke liked her back and I knew that I didn't have a chance. It's not really the fact that they're together that bothers me…"

"It's the idea of b-being lonely?" she suggested.

"Maybe…" Cerulean eyes broke contact with lavender eyes for a silent moment. "Anyways, enough about me, who was the visitor last time?"

"V-visitor?"

"We heard footsteps and you pushed me out that window."

"I'll t-tell you another day," she said in a hushed voice. The footsteps once more resounded in the room, getting louder as every second ticked by. "Go," she said, her eyes filled with the sadness that was seen in her portrait. From a sudden impulse, Naruto kissed her on the forehead and jumped out the window for the second time.

The next day, Naruto had a dreamless sleep. That day then became a week without dream-Hinata…

Where did dream-Hinata go? Will Naruto find out how Sakura and Sasuke got together? And more importantly, has he passed his chemistry quiz???

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AN: Wahhh… I'm sorry if this chapter was a bit boring. I might post this and the third chapter at the same time but please review both chapters if you can!


	3. Hear me

The Portrait

Disclaimer: Kakashi should say it for me!

Kakashi: Megumi-chan doesn't own Naruto.

Megumi: Kyaaa huggles I love you Oh yeah, one more disclaimer. whispers it to Kakashi

Kakashi: And she doesn't own Shakespeare either.

AN: The author apologizes profusely if the last chapter wasn't interesting. She will try and make up for it with this chapter.

Also, thank you to all my readers for such overwhelming support from the last time. I've never been added to favourite author's lists unless the people were my friends so THANK YOU! I will try my best to write this story well. Also, sorry for the late update, I try to update every few days but things are happening. The next update will either come late or early.

Author's challenge: Can you find the Shakespeare bit in the text? (It's really not that hard.)

Chapter 3

"_V-visitor?"_

_"We heard footsteps and you pushed me out that window."_

_"I'll t-tell you another day," she said in a hushed voice. The footsteps once more resounded in the room, getting louder as every second ticked by. "Go," she said, her eyes filled with the sadness that was seen in her portrait. From a sudden impulse, Naruto kissed her on the forehead and jumped out the window for the second time._

_The next day, Naruto had a dreamless sleep. That day then became a week without dream-Hinata…_

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Naruto, Sakura and Sasuke were walking to their lockers to get their lunches. Suddenly, Sasuke whacked Naruto on the head. Naruto simply waved the hand away in case of another attack.

"Hey, Naruto are you okay? You seem down lately," said Sakura.

"I'm fine… lack of sleep I guess," muttered Naruto. A figure came beside him.

"Hey Naruto, Shizune sensei wants you to see her in the teacher's office," said Tenten, a friend of theirs.

"Thanks Tenten," he replied. "I better go," he said to his friends and walked off.

"Lack of sleep my ass, he overslept and was late for class twice this week," said Sasuke as his blonde friend walked off.

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"Naruto, I want you to tell me the meaning of this," said Shizune sensei. He handed her a paper with an 18 scrawled in red at the top left-hand corner. Thick red lines followed by question marks could be seen on his short answers.

"Oh this!" exclaimed Naruto. A smile – the first one this week – appeared on his foxy face. He sheepishly put his hand on the back of his head. "Yeah, I did study for this chemistry quiz Shizune sensei. Honestly. But that morning, I overslept and got nervous and forgot the answers so I wrote 'ramen' as the answer to the questions I didn't know!"

Shizune looked exasperatedly at the child who was standing before him, proud of the fact that he answered more than half the questions on the quiz with the word 'ramen'.

"Anyways, study and don't oversleep next time and I'm sure you'll at least pass the next quiz."

"Sure thing!" he replied with a smile, Shizune smiled as well. There was an undeniable charm to the boy.

"WHAT DO YOU MEAN YOU TRY? YOU OBVIOUSLY DON'T!" yelled a sensei nearby.

"I'm sorry," replied a monotone voice.

"YOU DON'T SOUND LIKE IT!"

"Ebisu sensei, I'm sure you can get your point across without yelling at her," said Shizune sensei.

Ebisu sensei resumed his lecture, "Miss Hyuuga, I'm sure that you are aware of the fact that to attain good grades, hard work and effort in your schoolwork is needed. Actually let me rephrase that – you need to DO your schoolwork AND when you DO your schoolwork hand it in ON TIME!!!"

"Now, Ebisu sensei, perhaps you should listen to her side of the story before you scold her too much," suggested Shizune. "Are you having trouble with your homework Hinata? Do you need tutoring or extra help?"

"No."

"Is there a reason why you don't finish your homework then?" asked Shizune gently.

"I just don't have the time," replied Hinata in her emotionless voice again. Naruto saddened at the fact that this Hinata was truly not the same as dream-Hinata. How he truly longed to hear her voice…

"Then maybe you should quit any clubs or activities that might take up too much time," suggested Shizune in a friendly voice.

"I'm not in any of those," was the monotonous reply.

"Is it something at home then?" The question was answered by the shake of her head.

"What do you do in the evenings Hinata?" asked Shizune. She was clearly worried for this student. Unfortunately, there was nothing to assuage her fears as this question was met with silence. "Hinata, if you're in any trouble at home, you can always talk to me or Ebisu sensei, okay?"

Hinata nodded.

"Hinata, I want you to tell me what you do in the even – " began Ebisu sensei again, his voice was almost threatening.

"Hey, closet pervert, she gets it, she'll do her homework. Just let her go already," said Naruto.

"Perhaps that would be a good idea," offered Shizune sensei. "Why don't you get started on your homework now if time is an issue."

Both students left the office before Ebisu could protest any more.

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"Wow, you're really getting to it aren't you?" commented Naruto. He had followed Hinata to the library, who immediately began doing her calculus homework. As Hinata remained silent, Naruto fidgeted in his seat.

"Look, I don't know what's happening but please tell her 'I'm sorry' if she's mad at me. I want to see her again," he said after fifteen agonizing minutes of silence.

Lavender eyes met blue for a brief moment and then returned to calculus homework. Naruto grabbed his stuff and decided to go home. He just wanted to sleep again. To sleep, perchance to dream…

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Naruto felt his eyes beginning to open.

'Please… show her to me… please…' he thought.

"N-naruto?" asked the gentle voice he yearned for.

"Hinata!" Impulsively, he threw his arms around the girl's slender torso. "I'm sorry if something I said made you angry…"

"You d-didn't do anything Naruto," she replied softly, almost in a sad tone.

"Then why didn't I see you for a week!?" he exclaimed, almost angrily. Her eyes avoided his for a moment.

"I-I! You… H-he found out about you."

"He?"

"Who you call the 'visitor'."

"Is he the painter?"

"May- I t-think so…"

"But what can he do?"

"I don't k-know, b-but you can't let h-him know y-you're here."

"Hinata, I'll protect you from him, then you'll be – "

Tears began to form in her eyes. "You d-don't understand… you should just g-go…" Without looking at him, she pushed him out the window once more. She did not dare meet his eyes as they drifted further and further, hers were full of tears…

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Naruto woke up with a start. He was quite awake and yet he felt… dead. His digital clock flashed 4:09 AM with a small "Friday" in one of the corners. He should go to school today but he was not in the mood for it.

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"You seem very eager to get in, waiting at the front for an hour before this place opened…" said the ticket vendor at the art gallery. Naruto took his ticket and went in. He walked straight to where Hinata's portrait would be…

He arrived at the spot and found that no one else was there. 'I'll be the only one to admire Hinata today…' he thought. When he looked up to where the giant portrait was supposed to be, he saw nothing but a blank wall.

"WHERE DID IT GO?" he shouted to no one in particular. Footsteps came closer to where the blonde boy was standing. Naruto turned around instinctively.

"I see someone is alarmed of the disappearance of our lady already," he said quite calmly.

"Who are you?" demanded Naruto, his tone almost rude.

"I'm Yamato, the curator in charge of this painting."

"Where did she go?" he asked, his tone becoming more and more impatient and impolite as he kept speaking. Yamato did not seem to be alarmed.

"She was suddenly taken into conservation last night. She cried again yesterday."

"She cried?" asked Naruto in disbelief, his face contorted in a horrified expression.

"You see, sometimes for some odd reason, water droplets emit from our dear lady's eyes. It used to happen about once every decade. The last time she cried was about a year ago but she broke her pattern and cried yesterday."

"W-why would she…" Naruto's eyes were downcast at the statement.

"No scientist has been able to explain this phenomenon. Some say it's poor preservation of the painting but no other painting cries other than our lady."

"I see…" he muttered and walked off. He might as well go to school if Hinata wasn't there.

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"NARUTO! Where have you been?" asked Sakura. Although the phrase indicated that Naruto was to earn a scolding by his friend, both Sakura and Sasuke seemed to be concerned.

"You missed a pretty awesome soccer game dobe," chided Sasuke. This earned no response from his friend. Frustrated, Sakura walked in front of Naruto.

"Look," she said. "Let's just skip class and have a good talk okay?"

"Sure…" he replied but not all of him was present.

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At a nearby café, after ordering drinks, an odd silence fell upon the three friends.

"So, why'd you miss gym first period dobe? It's the only class you're good at," said Sasuke, finally breaking the silence. This earned no response from Naruto.

"What Sasuke's trying to say is that we're worried about you. It sounds cliché but it's true. You've skipped class for the last two days and you don't skip without a good reason. Naruto… what I'm trying to get at is… are you angry about… me and Sasuke?"

Naruto looked up from his drink to stare incredulously at the couple.

"No."

"Look dobe, our relationship just happened. While you were staring at that picture, we were just bickering. You remember? Sakura said, 'She's pretty isn't she?' and then I said, 'I guess.' And then she went on and asked if she was prettier. I then I just said, 'What if I say yes?' Then one thing led to another and eventually we went out on date. It wasn't complicated or anything and it's nothing to be jealous over. I thought you got over Sakura a long time ago."

"It's not that Sasuke," replied Naruto wearily.

"Then what the hell is it?" asked Sasuke angrily, his hand grabbed Naruto's shirt collar quite forcefully.

"Look, you just don't understand…" He undid Sasuke's grasp on his shirt and walked out of the café.

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Naruto went home again, not quite wanting to go back to school. He locked himself quickly in his room.

"Sasuke and Sakura seem happy together. They deserve one another," he muttered. "But it's unbearable. Where's my special person? Like hell Hinata will do any good in this situation, she's just a damn picture." His anger was unsteadily climbing as he kept talking to himself. He slammed his fist into the nearby wall but he was still not calm.

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A few hours later, Naruto went out for a walk, his emotions still unsettled. He walked by the school, stopping at the side gate to watch the students come out after the end of school bell tolled. A figure came towards him, that certain figure had indigo hair and lavender eyes… On a sudden impulse, Naruto walked in the front of her, blocking her path.

"Excuse me," was her response in her regular emotionless voice. Cerulean eyes filled with sadness and anger.

"DAMMIT!" he yelled. He grabbed the girl's wrist and dragged her away, not quite knowing where he was going.

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They ended up on a small scenic bridge above a brook near the school.

"Stay," he commanded and the girl sat on the bridge looking at him with expressionless eyes. Silence filled the air between them as Naruto searched for words to say. They stood there but as twilight was about to come, the girl finally spoke:

"I need to go soon."

A heavy sigh escaped his lips.

"Look, I don't know what you are to the other Hinata but somehow I know you're connected with her but you're definitely NOT her. Just tell her… tell her that if I don't see her tonight, I'll kill myself. I'm completely serious. Tell her that."

He stared intensely in her eyes, which held a slightly tinge of fear: the only emotion she seemed to be able to express. With that, she walked away, leaving Naruto with a queasy feeling in his stomach.

Will Naruto see dream-Hinata tonight? Will Naruto and his friends make up? Why doesn't Hinata have time to do her homework???


	4. Meeting You

The Portrait

Disclaimer: Today's disclaimer announcer is… Shiranui Genma!

Genma: Do I have to do this?

Megumi: -takes toothpick out of his mouth and pokes him with it-

Genma: Ouch…

Megumi: Say it. -pokes-

Genma: Megumi-chan doesn't own Naruto.

Megumi: Yay! -hugs Genma-

Kakashi: What about me?

Megumi: -glomps Kakashi-

Kakashi: Yay!

AN: I apologize for my random disclaimers and also if Naruto is getting really emo during the last and this chapter. I get annoyed when characters become emo but somehow the characters have acted out on their own and I do nothing but tell their story. Also, don't forget, Hinata sits behind Naruto in history class!

Also, again thank you for the huge support, it was so wonderful to see all the reviews, favourites and alerts! So please enjoy this chapter, the next chapter will come a little late. (I'm sorry!)

Chapter 4

"_Look, I don't know what you are to the other Hinata but somehow I know you're connected with her but you're definitely NOT her. Just tell her… tell her that if I don't see her tonight, I'll kill myself. I'm completely serious. Tell her that."_

_He stared intensely in her eyes, which held a slightly tinge of fear: the only emotion she seemed to be able to express. With that, she walked away, leaving Naruto with a queasy feeling in his stomach._

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Sobs echoed in the small room. Naruto forced his eyes open to reveal Hinata in front of the no longer foreign window.

"Hinata…" His hands reached to touch her hair.

"You really s-shouldn't come anymore," she whispered.

"But I want to see you." Naruto drew himself upwards and set himself face to face with Hinata. "Don't you want to see me?"

She smiles, her delicate features on her face are highlighted by her small action. Although she smiles with her lips, her eyes still held a certain sadness.

"If you stay here, you might be stuck here forever," she said, her voice ending with a whisper. She did not look at Naruto as she said this.

"It wouldn't matter, I'll be stuck with you," he replied. Tears fall on her flushed cheeks. "Promise me that I'll see you every night." Hinata went rigid, her head began to turn sideways but Naruto interjected, "If you don't, I swear I'll die. Sakura and Sasuke will have each other, it won't matter to them if I'm gone. But I don't want to live if I can't see you Hinata."

She nods reluctantly in response.

After a few moments of silence, Hinata spoke.

"Is it really b-bad over there if you w-want to stay here?" she asked.

"It's not bad there at all! It used to be but it's great now," replies Naruto.

"Used t-to be bad?"

"Well you see, I was raised in an orphanage 'cause my parents died when I was young. A family friend, Iruka decided to adopt me but kids at school made fun of me because I was adopted. But then I found Sakura and Sasuke and Kakashi-sensei in high school and it's really not that bad anymore. Then again, Iruka's a great guy anyways, he's just like a father! With all my friends, I really don't need a family at all."

"That sounds w-wonderful," said Hinata, she smiled earnestly at Naruto for the first time. Naruto felt heat rise to his cheeks.

"What about you?" he blurted but realized too late. "I'm sorry… if you don't want to tell me, that's fine. Especially with this whole portrait business." The word portrait was said in a really low voice. Naruto looked at Hinata to remark on her expression but somehow, her honest smile did not fade away.

"It's o-okay. I'll t-tell you another d-day. T-tell me more about y-your f-friends."

"Well there's Sasuke," began Naruto. "He looks and acts all cool and stuff but I'm wayyy better than he is. He has a whole bunch of fangirls…"

He spent what seemed like hours telling Hinata about all his adventures with Sakura, Sasuke, Kakashi and Iruka. Naruto didn't stop as Hinata did not stop smiling while he recounted his stories. At one point, she even laughed; the sound of her laughter made Naruto inexplicably happy. It was when he finally heard the dreaded footsteps that he stopped. He had one foot upon the windowsill as he said, "I'll see you tomorrow night then?"

Hinata's smile faded slightly for the first time after his stories but she nodded. With that, Naruto jumped out, his hand reaching out for hers as he fell further and further away.

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Naruto woke up tired but he felt wonderful for the first time in what seemed like ages. His alarm clock rang after he woke, its annoying shrill continuing. Naruto raised his arm to shut it off but his arm did not respond, it felt too heavy from fatigue to be moved.

"Oh well, five more minutes I guess…" Naruto laid in his bed until then.

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"Hey Naruto, you look better today," said Sakura at Naruto's locker. Behind her, Sasuke slapped him on the side of the head.

"Your reflexes are getting slower dobe," he said but with a smile on his face. Both friends were relieved at the fact that their friend did not seem upset or depressed.

"SHUT UP SASUKE, I'LL BEAT YOU UP ANY DAY OF THE WEEK!" yelled Naruto.

Yup… their friend was pretty much back to normal.

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Naruto's day went pretty well from then on. He had quite a lot of fun with Sakura and Sasuke, he had quite a nice nap in English class and he did a chemistry quiz without writing 'ramen' as the answer for any of the questions! When the day was over, he told Hinata about it.

"…And I think I passed the chemistry test Shizune sensei gave us today, I studied for it and I also checked a few of my answers with Sakura's quiz."

"W-were you supposed t-to do that?"

"Nope," he replied with a huge grin on his face. For the second time during their acquaintance, Hinata laughed again.

"Your laugh and smile is prettier than what they have on canvas at the art gallery," he noted. A flush came to Hinata's face and for once, she didn't seem upset that he was talking about her painted self. "By the way Hinata, what do you do in the day?"

Hinata's face became contemplative for a moment and she then answered, "Well, I really d-don't know…"

"Huh?"

"W-well you see… I r-remember your v-visits clearly N-naruto-kun, but what happens b-before and after is all a b-blank. I d-don't know w-why…" Her voice drifted into an embarrassed silence.

"No worries I guess!" said Naruto happily. "As long as you remember the parts with me in it!" He gave her one of his signature grins followed by the thumbs up sign. She smiled along with him.

"I-I love h-hearing your stories t-though."

"And I'm glad that you like them!"

"But it d-doesn't seem so b-bad over there."

"That's because it's not bad there at all!"

"Then why did you say that you didn't mind being stuck here?" Hinata's voice became cold, it was almost uncannily like the voice of Hinata in his world.

"B-because, it's nice being with you! You're a nice person and you didn't deserve to be here and i-it's just nice talking to you!" His face was beginning to flame with reasons unknown to him. Luckily for him, the sounds of the footsteps came,

"I'll see you tomorrow night," he said with a grin and jumped out the window.

Hinata and Naruto saw each other, the next night, and the night after, and the night after that…

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A week later…

Naruto jumped out the window with a wave. From the distance, he saw Hinata wave back. Lately, Hinata smiled more than usual during his visits although he could've sworn he saw her eyes flash with painful sadness everytime he left…

During his visits, he would tell her all about modern Konoha, about his lessons, anything he thought would be interesting. In exchange, Naruto learned a few things about Hinata. It was quite difficult as Naruto would continuously press for the answers but she gave them eventually. Naruto was now armed with the knowledge that Hinata enjoyed pressing flowers and that her favourite food was bean jam. She was from the old Hyuuga family, which still existed in modern Konoha. Sadly though, Naruto was still hankering for her story of her portrait but he waited patiently for her readiness to tell him the story. Still, he was unquestionably happy every time he met with her and he wasn't going to get her mad over a little story.

Today, Naruto's alarm clock woke him after a very pleasant meeting with Hinata. She told him the story of when she first ate crab as a child. It was one of her least favourite foods.

Smiling to himself, Naruto tried opening his eyes, but they would not open. He was becoming more and more weary as the days went by, it was getting harder and harder for Naruto to get up and at times, it took five to ten minutes before his body would respond to his desire of movement. Perhaps meeting Hinata at night took away some of his sleep but it didn't matter. Seeing her was well worth sleep, especially since he could sleep in class to make up for it. Finally, after fifteen minutes of lying in bed, Naruto got up to begin his day at school.

His day began well, he received an 89 on the chemistry quiz he wrote last week. Other than that, his day was not quite wonderful. Kurenai sensei yelled at the whole class for not putting enough emotion in their artwork. Sasuke was sick at home with a bad cold and during the whole day, Sakura made calls to make sure he was feeling well. It was quite sweet at first but it got irritating after hearing, 'Are you sure you're okay honey?' for the eighteenth time that day. In the end, Sakura skipped last period – history with Asuma sensei. Although Asuma sensei was quite lenient and let Naruto sleep most of the time, he seemed quite irate today and threw chalk at Naruto whenever he began drifting off to sleep again.

When the end of the day came, Naruto awoke from his slumber by the toll of the last bell. While Naruto was packing up his bag, he was still quite drowsy; he did not notice that the girl behind him was still there, staring at him intently.

"You should stay away from her," she said. This made Naruto fully awake instantaneously.

"You should stay away from her," she repeated, as she looked him straight in the eye. With that repetition she left, leaving Naruto frozen in place. He was shocked, in that brief moment when their eyes met, the lavender eyes held sadness. It was the same sadness he saw in dream-Hinata's eyes whenever he jumped out the window…

Is there another reason why dream-Hinata is sad when she sees Naruto leave the tower? Will Naruto stay away from dream-Hinata? What **does** dream-Hinata do in the day?


	5. Forsaken

The Portrait

Disclaimer: Who should do it this chapter? Hm…

Gai: I'LL DO IT FOR THE SPIRIT OF YOUTH! LEE, JOIN ME IN THIS YOUTHFUL ANNOUNCEMENT!

Lee: Alright Gai sensei!

Gai: Let's warm up our vocal chords first with exercises!

Lee: YOSH!

Gai and Lee: AAA EEE OOO UUU III

Megumi: sigh

Kakashi: I'll do it then. Megumi chan doesn't own Naruto.

Megumi: Thank you Kakashi kun -hugs-

AN: Thank you again for the support from the last two chapters. I apologize if this chapter took a bit longer to come out; it was a difficult chapter not to mention that my schedule is a bit hectic at the moment. I'll try and update as soon as I can. But I hope you enjoy the story!

Chapter 5

_When the end of the day came, Naruto awoke from his slumber by the toll of the last bell. While Naruto was packing up his bag, he was still quite drowsy; he did not notice that the girl behind him was still there, staring at him intently._

"_You should stay away from her," she said. This made Naruto fully awake instantaneously. _

"_You should stay away from her," she repeated, as she looked him straight in the eye. With that repetition she left, leaving Naruto frozen in place. He was shocked, in that brief moment when their eyes met, the lavender eyes held sadness. It was the same sadness he saw in dream-Hinata's eyes whenever he jumped out the window…_

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"She can't tell me what to do," muttered Naruto angrily as he walked home from school.

Naruto went home and tried to do his homework. He was in such a foul mood that he decided to stop and play a video game. He couldn't seem to concentrate on that either. He tried to clean his room but got annoyed after a few minutes. Nothing he did seemed to calm him down; he just wanted to sleep. His digital clock showed him that it was 8:10 in the evening. He sat on his bed but heard sounds downstairs. He went down to see what they were.

"Hey Naruto! How were the weeks without me? It **was** a long business trip this time. You seemed to have survived," greeted Iruka, his foster father.

"I lived," he replied as he took Iruka's bags up to his room.

"Then how 'bout a good meal today? I'll treat you to ramen!" said Iruka enthusiastically.

"Not today," said Naruto, he went up to stairs to his room again.

"Something's not right," muttered Iruka. "He's never refused a treat for ramen before…"

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Naruto awoke to see Hinata's delicate lavender eyes looking intently at him.

"Hinata," he said, his voice full or relief. He held her tightly for a moment.

"You seem upset… did anything bad happen today?" she asked.

Naruto opened his mouth to speak but the feeling of impropriety of telling dream-Hinata about real-Hinata struck him again.

"No, nothing much…" he muttered.

"That's good," replied Hinata, stroking his hair.

"Hey Hinata…"

"Yes?"

"You still haven't told me about your story about Sai and the portrait."

A heavy silence struck the two.

"Well… it's…" she began.

"Please tell me Hinata," he begged. With a worried look in her eyes, she opened her mouth and let her melodious voice tell her story.

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_As you know, I was born into one of the most prestigious families of Konoha: the Hyuugas. I was firstborn of two sisters and it was I who was supposed to inherit the family business with whomever my husband was to be. Unfortunately, because of my shyness, it was Hanabi, my younger sister who got all the rich and powerful suitors while I caught the eye of more obscure characters. While Hanabi enjoyed the company of society and their parties and dinners, I preferred walking in the city or going to the fields to study the herbs and plants. It was during one of these times that I met Sai._

_Although I hear very much that Sai was a stalker of sorts, he didn't stalk people for no reason. He should be considered one of the most talented painters in history as he truly did capture people's personalities. The way he did that was to observe their daily lives and try to piece together a composition that reflected the person on the canvas. As a result, Sai followed his clients in an almost stalkerish manner to find their 'true colours' as we might say. At times though, if someone caught his interest, he would leave his client to explore whoever it was that caught his eye. I was one such person._

_I was on the edge of the Hyuuga lands, studying the flowers and plants when in the corner of my eye, I saw a figure cut across the field before me. Not long after, another figure cut across the same path. The second figure seemed to notice my presence as I noticed his. It was in that moment that Sai and I met. The first figure that went by was the wife of a rich merchant. The merchant commissioned the painting from Sai without his wife knowing. Sai was renowned to be a painter that could capture likeness with only one look at the person. So there he was, following the merchant's wife who just happened to be sneaking to his lover's abode through the Hyuuga lands. He stopped when he saw me and gave me a bow, after that he was gone. For the next month, this would happen every time I was in the field. I would spot him and he would stop and bow. After a month of formal bowing, Sai tentatively talked to me. _

_"Good afternoon my fair lady," were his first words to me._

_"Good afternoon," I replied._

_He smiled an awkward smile and continued. "I am Sai, a painter you may have heard of. I am also called 'Master stalker painter' and at times, I am referred to as 'creep'."_

_I laughed at that statement. He was an odd person but I eventually became good friends with the painter. Many of our meetings consisted of sitting side by side without a word. I would sketch and study my plants while he drew whatever suited his fancy. At times we would talk – about our families or our lack thereof (physically and emotionally), of our dreams… Sai was the brother I never had in my life as a Hyuuga and I was the mother or sister that Sai never had as he was adopted by the rich but cold merchant Danzo after seeing his talent. We were kindred spirits, drawn to each other out of loneliness. Thus was our companionship, silent yet it existed within that silence, there was affection even if we were raised without any… Suddenly, disaster struck._

_First of all, Father discovered our friendship. He was suspicious of Sai and of me. Already disgraced in his eyes since all my suitors were inappropriate for the noble family of Hyuuga, he was even more disgusted at this predicament. Although Sai was an adopted child of Danzo, he became respected in most of Konoha's elite society when his painting talents were unleashed into the world. Unfortunately for me, Father disliked Danzo and never had any respect for the famous painter. Even if by some possibility we were in love, Father would have never approved of our relationship; but even as our relationship was nothing but friendship, he condemned it anyways. Sadly, this was not the whole extent of our problems. Racking coughs shook my body constantly and it was then discovered that I had consumption. Being the elite family as we were, having a commoner's disease such as tuberculosis was unheard of. Immediately and illogically, Father suspected that I caught the disease from my involvement with Sai. My honour was in question and I was ostracized from the family at my most dire moment. I was locked in my room and hidden away from the prying eyes of society. _

_Luckily for me, I was saved from my prison by Sai. He managed to sneak me out of my room and take me to one of Danzo's private houses in the country. There, I rested, knowing my death was in sight but Sai was there, always my beloved brother. It was then that rumours began to spread of us. Some said that the two of us eloped; others claimed that Sai kidnapped me out of crazed infatuation – this was the rumour that was encouraged by my family. Nonetheless, both of us were ruined and unable to return to society the way we were before. I didn't quite mind this as didn't really want to go back to the cold environment that was once my life. Sai on the other hand, took my exile a bit harder. He blamed himself for all of it; he became reclusive and it was then when he started painting my portrait. It was his own way of asking for forgiveness when there was nothing to apologize for. Even so, I let him paint in peace. I watched him in silence, although the silence was continually broken by my racking and worsening coughs. I never saw the painting in its completed state. I died seeing the painting in its final stages but during my final moments, I wished dearly that I could watch over Sai until he finished my portrait…_

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"That is why, I believe that I was taken into the portrait. Why I can't escape from this world is unknown to me," finished Hinata.

"You don't need to know why you can't escape Hinata, I'll do anything I can to help you escape. Then you can come and see what Konoha is like now and you'll meet Sakura and Sasuke and you can eat really good ramen at Ichiraku's!" he exclaimed. Hinata smiled gently in response but her eyes were focused elsewhere.

"It would be wise if you go now," she said, the usual melody in her voice was gone.

"But can't I stay a bit longer? The painter or footsteps guy hasn't come yet!" said Naruto with a pout. Hinata gave him a pleading look, he understood. With a wave, he jumped out of the window…

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Oddly enough, he didn't wake as he usually did after jumping out the window. Naruto was consciously aware that he was in his own world and yet his eyes would not open. Somehow, he could see his surroundings and hear Iruka shuffling in his sleep in the next room. He felt his comforter covering him but the comforter felt oddly heavy. He felt trapped in his body. Terrified, Naruto tried moving, after half an hour of struggling, Naruto moved and broke free that bizarre state of consciousness. Cold sweat came down his temples. It was going to be a long day.

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Naruto's day was certainly a long one as he went through it in a daze. Anything anyone said to him seemed to float off into space as he concentrated only on two things. The terrifying experience he had this morning and Hinata. Over the course of several weeks that he met Hinata, he wanted more than ever to protect her from the one whose footsteps cut their meetings short. He wanted to show her everything there was in his world. His desire to see her was a craving he couldn't stop – nor did he want it to stop. That day, Naruto also noticed that the Hinata in his world could be seen looking at him but he ignore her stares after a while. _That_ Hinata didn't matter to him anymore. It felt as if nothing else did. He was determined to get Hinata out of the painting no matter what.

After history class, Naruto headed for the door. He didn't even fall asleep this class as he was thinking of a plan to get Hinata out somehow. He was suddenly stopped by a hand grabbing his wrist.

"Does the threat still stand?" inquired a voice full of fear. Lavender eyes were pleading for an answer.

"Threat?" asked Naruto, clearly puzzled.

"Will you still kill yourself if you can't see her?" She was breathless and clearly upset. Her question was voiced in nearly a terrified whisper.

"Of course," he breathed. She let go of his wrist and let him walk away, her eyes were full of tears.

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Naruto went to bed early that night, eagerly awaiting another night in the tower. He opened his eyes but realized something was odd. His head lay against a cold, hard surface when usually he woke up on Hinata's lap. He looked up and saw the window in which he jumped out but Hinata wasn't there. Instead, he heard footsteps coming towards him.

A voice came out from the darkness. It's odd mocking and yet weak voice rang throughout the tower.

"Welcome."

Who is making those footsteps and what is his purpose? How will Naruto get Hinata out of the portrait? When will Naruto eat ramen again???


	6. Saving You, Saving Me

The Portrait

Disclaimer: Sai will do the disclaimer for this chapter.

Sai: Megumi san does not own Naruto. She wouldn't want to since he has a small –

Megumi: Shhh!!! Stop right there!

Sai: Why? It's true...

Megumi: How on Earth do you know? O.o

Kakashi: Megumi-chan, the disclaimer.

Megumi: Say it Kakashi-kun, since you seem to be the only one who can do it properly without poking or blackmailing of any sort.

Kakashi: Megumi chan doesn't own Naruto.

Megumi: Yup yup. -hugs Kakashi-

AN: Sorry for the really really long wait. I also apologize with the short chapter. I guess I just got bulldozed with school. I'll try and update as soon as I can but the length of time it will take is unknown for the moment. Still, I thank my patient fans as well as those who have read my other stories. Thank you for your support!

Chapter VI

_Naruto went to bed early that night, eagerly awaiting another night in the tower. He opened his eyes but realized something was odd. His head lay against a cold, hard surface when usually he woke up on Hinata's lap. He looked up and saw the window in which he jumped out but Hinata wasn't there. Instead, he heard footsteps coming towards him._

_A voice came out from the darkness. It's odd mocking and yet weak voice rang throughout the tower._

_"Welcome."_

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"Where the heck are you?" asked Naruto. He looked frantically around the room. A figure suddenly loomed behind Naruto.

"Don't be alarmed Naruto-kun." Naruto turned around to see a young man with short black hair. A strange awkward smile loomed on his face.

"Who are you?" he asked, his eyes glared at the figure with intense suspiscion.

"I am Sai, you probably know me because of my paintings."

"Are you the one keeping Hinata prisoner? I'll fight you, I'll set her free!" he yelled. A sad smile came on Sai's face.

"Sit down, and perhaps I shall explain a few things," he offered. Naruto glared at the artist and sat down without breaking eye contact.

"So… where do I start?" questioned Sai in an almost airy voice.

"How did Hinata get stuck in this portrait?" asked Naruto menacingly.

"Ahhh… that. Well it all began with…

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_It all began with Hinata's illness. No one knew how Hinata got infected with consumption in the first place but her father was convinced that it was my fault somehow. One way or another, I was not going to let Hinata be abused by her father's harsh words any longer. Already ostracized from her family, I brought Hinata to my guardian Danzo's summer home. Both of us were "ruined" in the eyes of society and the house was perfect for Hinata to rest and for me to paint. It was there where we began our existence as a family, as the brother and sister we never had. _

_Sadly, our lives could not be filled with peace. Society's harsh judgements were constantly looming over us. Many began to say that I kidnapped the honourable Hinata and made her my prisoner; they also began talking of my previous days where I would follow my clients before painting them. But to Hinata and I, it didn't matter. What did concern me though, was how Hinata's cough worsened as days went by. I wanted to cure her of her illness. I tried to find doctors who would help her but none could. It seemed as if no one could help her. I began to be reclusive and hid in Danzo's library. It was there where I discovered a way I could possibly save Hinata. _

_I remember the day very well. Another doctor had just come and was unable to do anything with Hinata's worsening illness. I usually hid my distress from Hinata by drinking only in my adoptive father's library but that day, I decided to express my rage by throwing books across the room and into the fireplace. It was then that I discovered the spellbook._

_My adoptive father Danzo was fanatical about three things: politics, money and for some reason, magic. He had volumes and volumes of books filled with what were supposed to be magic spells, runes and enchantments. In my anger, I threw a book across the room but I missed the fireplace. When I went to retrieve it, I found the contents fascinating and then, I stumbled upon a page that contained a spell to preserve a person. I desperately wanted to save Hinata. She was the only person in the world that liked me for who I was. She was the one person I didn't want to lose. She was my one and only family member. Danzo adopted me for my artistic talent so that he could bring prestige to his family name. He also used me as a spy, for some of my stalking ventures were for information for blackmail and bribery. He nor I considered each other family. Hinata on the other hand became my friend, sister and mother. So I decided to perform the rituals described in the book. Around the same time, I also decided to paint Hinata's portrait. _

_Then something went wrong. Hinata didn't cough as much when I continued the spell but at the same time, she became more and more tired, eventually she fell into the eternal slumber of death. I had not finished the portrait yet. Nevertheless, a deep sadness settled into me and I was unable to paint. I began to drink even more, yet in my drunken state, my mind was clear. One night, after my bottle of sake, I performed the spell ritual once more. After I did so, I had an insane inclination to paint. It was then when I finished my portrait, as I painted, I felt the last strains of life drain from my body. When the morning light came, I was dead but my soul resided by Hinata's finished portrait. It when then when I finally saw that Hinata's soul was preserved inside but she was trapped and unable to escape._

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"The day you came to the art gallery Naruto-kun was the day I finally managed to dislodge part of Hinata's soul from the portrait. I have no clue how it happened but somehow, something worked and part of Hinata's soul has been taken outside the realm of the portrait. Somehow, it has also manifested itself into a living creature."

"You mean, the Hinata in my world is part of Hinata in this world?" asked Naruto, almost in a state of shock.

"Yes. Lately, more and more of her soul has been taken out of this portrait Naruto-kun, but for a price," stated Sai, now looking straight into Naruto's eyes.

"That's good then!" exclaimed Naruto naively.

"Good for Hinata, yes but it does not leave you in a stable situation Naruto-kun."

"W-Why? Hinata's being freed..."

"Naruto-kun, haven't you ever noticed that whenever you or Hinata have exchanged stories about one another, the Hinata in your world seems to gain be more and more… personality? Not to mention that you have been feeling more and more drained as the days go by?"

Naruto froze. The intensity of real Hinata's sadness had increased as his meetings with portrait Hinata continued… And then there was that day in which he felt trapped in his body… What was happening?

"You see Naruto-kun, whenever you shared your stories with Hinata, your soul entered this realm bit by bit and whenever Hinata told you her stories, part of her soul went into your realm, making real Hinata more… alive. Hinata realized this after your second meeting – that was why she didn't meet you for a week. She was forced to see you again when you threatened her in the real world. She was happy that you seemed to care for her of course, but she knew that you were going to put yourself in more and more danger whenever you came here."

Sai paused and stared intensely into Naruto's eyes. The blonde seemed deeply frightened.

"Now the question is, what will **you** do Naruto-kun? Will you pour the rest of your soul into the portrait and reside here forever so you can free Hinata completely? Or will you run away from Hinata and let her soul slowly come back to the portrait so you can have all of your soul back and live normally again?"

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What will be Naruto's decision? In the end, who will he sacrifice? Will he ever have ramen ever again???


	7. Freedom and Love

The Portrait

Disclaimer: Kakashi, do the disclaimer!

Kakashi: Megumi-chan doesn't own Naruto. Unfortunately, that means that she doesn't own me either.

Megumi: We belong to one another! Let's get rid of Kishimoto and then I can own my Kakashi-kun!

Kakashi: But Naruto isn't over yet.

Megumi: True. Let's force him to relinquish you to me when he's done Naruto. Besides, the series needs more of you in it!

Kakashi: I agree. –hugs-

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AN: Sorry for not updating for so long. I really shouldn't be updating now as I have a torrent of studying and work to do but I had a huge inclination to write fanficton and I couldn't ignore it. I also began a new NejiTen story called "Two Weeks". Check it out and I hope you enjoy both this story and my new one too! _For the readers who have supported me since the beginning, thank you! Please enjoy the last chapter of "The Portrait". (I hope I don't get flamed for an epilogue.)_

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"_You see Naruto-kun, whenever you shared your stories with Hinata, your soul entered this realm bit by bit and whenever Hinata told you her stories, part of her soul went into your realm, making real Hinata more… alive. Hinata realized this after your second meeting – that was why she didn't meet you for a week. She was forced to see you again when you threatened her in the real world. She was happy that you seemed to care for her of course, but she knew that you were going to put yourself in more and more danger whenever you came here."_

_Sai paused and stared intensely into Naruto's eyes. The blonde seemed deeply frightened._

"_Now the question is, what will __**you**__ do Naruto-kun? Will you pour the rest of your soul into the portrait and reside here forever so you can free Hinata completely? Or will you run away from Hinata and let her soul slowly come back to the portrait so you can have all of your soul back and live normally again?"_

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"I… but…" began Naruto but he was too stunned to be coherent. Suddenly, a cry rang through the tower as Hinata ran in frantically.

"Hinata!" Naruto cried as he caught the girl before she fell. Tears were streaming down her cheeks as she held Naruto tightly. She could feel him shaking even as he was holding her tightly in a hug.

"N-no…" she whispered. "Don't s-sacrifice yourself Naruto. Continue your life. You have p-people who really care about you."

"But Hinata, you – "

"No Naruto… I can't live knowing t-that I trapped your soul here."

"And you think I can live knowing that I selfishly chose to save myself instead of you?"

"It wouldn't m-matter Naruto-kun," she whispered. "Your happiness is all that matters to me… I love you Naruto-kun… more than I love myself."

Naruto's shaking suddenly stopped. Calmly, he stepped away from Hinata and kissed her gently on her forehead. He held her shoulders tightly and pushed her out the window of the tower.

"You're willing to sacrifice yourself for her?" asked Sai.

"She's been trapped here for hundreds of years… doesn't that count for anything? I mean, all that time she must have been so lonely."

Sai's expression softened slightly.

"She has been here for hundreds of years watching all the people who have admired her. A few brave souls have managed to venture here but none of them stayed for long. Hinata had always wanted a normal life as the noblewoman she was. She wanted to use her power to improve things for others; she wanted to create the family she never had…"

"And now she can do it right? I'll live here instead of her Sai."

"I don't think she'll be happy if you did."

"I already went through this with Hinata. I can't leave her here!"

"Well…"

"What? Are you going to tell me that some other person's soul is needed for this ceremony or you need a ritual sacrifice?" he demanded impatiently.

"There is another alternative Naruto-kun…" said Sai.

"YOU COULD'VE TOLD ME THAT EARLIER!!!" yelled Naruto.

"Well, there's of course a price to pay, Naruto. However heavy or light the price is is for you to decide."

"Ok, so what is it?"

"Well, for the past three hundred years, Hinata has resided in this portrait, watching the normal world. It would be normal for her to have memories of her life here."

"Get to the point you ass of a painter."

"I was getting there," said Sai exasperatedly. "Anyways, both you and Hinata might be freed if we use her memories to replace the void the soul leaves. You see, this portrait cannot survive without a soul but if one were to leave this portrait abandoned and soulless, it would begin to take the soul of innocent bystanders and perhaps create a glitch in the natural order of the world. But three hundred years is truly long enough and these memories should be enough to replace Hinata's soul and set both you and her free from this portrait forever."

"Well then, do that!"

"Let me ask you a question first Naruto-kun."

"What?" he asked in an annoyed tone.

"You love Hinata right?" Naruto felt his face redden at the comment.

"Do… you even need to ask?" he mumbled.

"Naruto-kun, you realize that if I take all of Hinata's memories of the last three hundred years, they include all her memories with you. Without the memories of her time with you, she may never love you back again in the real world."

Naruto's expression turned into an expression of almost sadness. His shoulders were hunched and he faced the floor. Finally, after what seemed like a long period of silence he said,

"So be it. Anything to set her free."

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In the art gallery, Yamato had just finished his curatorial duties. He stepped outside his office and decided that he would that a walk around the gallery before he went home. Nighttime was his most favourite time of the day – no one was in the galleries and he could admire all the artwork in a peaceful silence. He passed by the fake van Gogh and some new works by contemporary artists. Finally, he stood in front of the portrait of the young lady by the master painter Sai. He stood there with an odd smile playing on his lips – he was not a man who could be read easily. He was known to be one who could hide his emotions masterfully. Yet, his expression of unknown emotion was sincere as he looking at the painting.

"My lady, you look different tonight," he said to the portrait. With that, he walked off to go home after a long day of work.

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"You're late!" said Hinata with an adorable pout on her face. She was standing in front of Ichiraku Ramen.

"Sorry Hinata-chan, Iruka made me deliver something to Anko-neechan's house," said Naruto sheepishly.

"Well, at least you're here," she said as she hugged him tightly.

"Of course, how could I forget our one year anniversary? Besides, we're having ramen, just like on our first date!"

"Well, you did forget the six month anniversary… and you almost forgot my birthday if it weren't for Sakura-chan."

Naruto looked at her girlfriend for a moment, contemplating. The Hinata in the real world had changed and blossomed. She no longer stuttered and enjoyed jestfully teasing Naruto frequently but she was still the same Hinata he knew and loved… for more than a year.

"Have you ever considered the possibility that you've forgotten more things than I have?" he asked jokingly as he played with one of her indigo tresses.

"Impossible," she stated confidently. "But it really doesn't matter does it?"

"Nope, not at all," replied Naruto softly as he gave his girlfriend a kiss.

THE END


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